Cycling club offers leisurely ride

About two lifetimes ago, I joined a women’s bicycling group in Baton Rouge.

Our ragtag bunch met Sunday mornings at 7 on River Road. We’d ride down to the ferry, cross the Mississippi River, grab breakfast in downtown Plaquemine and be back at our cars by 11 a.m. Easy riders.

At the peak of our bicycle fitness, someone suggested doing a “metric century” ride for a local charity.

I recall the event propaganda: Enjoy a breathtaking ride in West Feliciana Parish on a crisp October morning. Ride the gentle hills along the scenic Tunica Trace/Louisiana 66. Smell history. Feel history. Make history.

Reading between the lines, that meant: Ride the two-lane road to Louisiana’s equivalent of Hades: Angola State Penitentiary. From U.S. 61, it’s 20 miles down Louisiana 66 to the gates of the 18,000-acre prison farm I used to cover as part of my state reporter’s beat. And 20 miles back.

Also between the lines: Detour along the barely paved old Tunica Trace road, which includes a moss-slickened, wood-planked, low-sill bridge across a rain-swollen creek. At the bottom of a hill. It’s the Deep South’s version of black ice, where I discovered it’s a bad idea to hit the brakes.

Only snatches of the ride remain in my memory. Starting time: 6:30 a.m. Temperature: unseasonably hot. Humidity: at least 100 percent. Climbing Mount McKinley. Mount Everest. Mount Kilimanjaro. Over and over again. Being squeezed off the blacktop, flying over my handlebars, landing headfirst in a ditch — thankful I was wearing a sturdy helmet.

These memories were triggered when Clay Latimer told me about a women’s bicycling group here. She added me to an email list, and that’s how I met Deb Henson, founder of the Lakefront Women’s Hill Cycling Club. That’s not a typo, folks. Hill cycling.

Since April, the women have met in Lakeview for a ride to Lakefront Airport and back — with occasional detours along the Wisner Boulevard bike path to City Park or wherever their wheels take them.

Uncooperative weather has wreaked havoc on a definite schedule, but for now they’re meeting Tuesdays at 7 p.m. and some Sundays, weather permitting.

“The hills consist only of five to six small rises as we follow the levees along Lakeshore Drive,” Deb explained. “Then there is the new ‘flyover’ from Lakeshore onto the UNO campus that is fairly steep.

“We ride about 10 to 13 miles, and women are free to ride faster or slower, whatever pace they feel comfortable. It is definitely not a racing group, but rather an exercise-for-fun group. We stop and drink water and chat when the mood strikes us.”

I sent out an email to a host of folks, asking how they’re dealing with these hot, humid “dog days of summer.”

Right on cue, I got this from Kathy Schrenk at Little Liza Jane’s favorite park: “Every day is a dog day at NOLA City Bark! During the true ‘dog days of summer,’ dogs and owners take advantage of the cooler early morning or late evening hours to visit the park.”

Kathy added: “Water-loving dogs can frolic in the four doggie wading pools or the fire hydrant splash feature to cool down. A sand pit beneath the trees provides a cool, soft resting spot. Owners can watch their pets from the vantage point of chairs on the hill or in the shade beneath the oaks.” There are also two shower tables — Liza Jane’s least favorite feature — where owners can cool down and clean their pups.

Excellent lighting allows the park to offer extended hours. Kathy said it’s open daily from 5:30 a.m. to 9 p.m., except for Tuesdays, when it’s open only from 1 to 6 p.m. For complete info, including how to register your canines for membership, call 504.458.2311 or visit the fun website at www.nolacitybark.org.

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Melinda Shelton writes about Mid-City, Faubourg St. John and the Fair Grounds and DeSaix neighborhoods. She can be reached at melindalshelton@gmail.com or 504.942.1354.